Can you take down locs

Tightening sprays made with sea salt or swimming in the ocean can dramatically tighten and mature dreadlocks which can make Dread Removal far more difficult. Sea salt water is effective at absorbing and reducing oils from the scalp and other lubricating oils and products. As a result, the knots in your dreadlocks will tighten quite noticeably. The only exception to this is the twisting method, where the twist will come undone in the ocean due to the products that are used to hold the twist in place.

The shampoo you use for your dreadlocks plays an extremely important role in your dreadlock journey. Any shampoo that helps to tighten your dreadlocks will result in a more difficult time removing them. When removing dreadlocks you might want to completely skip using a shampoo for several reasons.

First, most shampoos are high in pH — more on why this is important below. Second, shampoos are designed to clean the hair and therefore will help to tighten knots. These two reasons should help you loosen knots in preparation to combing out your dreadlocks.

Conditioners and oils tend to loosen knots and are great for Removing Dreadlocks! Conditioners should be used with hair that is kept wet for removing dreads. Not all conditioners will get the job done well, so we recommend finding one designed for extreme detangling. Oils such as Olive Oil should only be used on completely dry hair that is product free for the removal process. Water and oil repel, so the hair must be free from moisture in order for the oil to penetrate the knots to help loosen and lubricate them.

Bleaches and any dyes that lighten hair undeniably weaken the hair. In order to lighten hair the outer sheathe of the hair strand is removed exposing the lighter part of the hair shaft underneath. This outer sheathe is basically the protective armor that protects each hair strand. Once removed, your hair is exposed and the structure of the hair strand is compromised resulting in much weaker, dryer, and damaged hair. With that being said, you may end up breaking and losing a lot more hair with bleached dreadlocks.

In some cases you may still be able to remove dreadlocks that have been bleached. But if your locs have been bleached harshly and a lot of time has passed, you might experience a significant amount of damaged hair that comes out when combing out dreads. The pH of hard water is typically above 8 and when pH levels are over 7 the cuticles of the hair remain open which leads to tighter knot formation.

When the cuticles are open while removing dreadlocks the cuticles may rub against each other likely to result in damage and breakage. Afro Hair is the most brittle and the most damage prone hair of all ethnicities. As a result, the products and methods used on Afro hair are important to keep the hair strong and healthy. If your products or methods have resulted in weak and damaged hair then you may experience a significant amount of hair that comes out during the removal process.

Even with the best products and the most gentle methods Afro Hair may still be too brittle in some cases — proceed with caution. Caucasian and Hispanic hair will vary significantly.

Some hair is extremely fine and already thin whereas other hair is very coarse, strong and full. Italian hair is one that tends to be more like Asian hair with a thick, coarse texture. This hair type should be easier to remove compared to other Caucasian hair and you should also anticipate loosing less hair with this type of hair.

Other types of hair that are very fine will still be removable but you may experience more hair loss during the process. Some very fine hair types actually lack the outermost layer to the shaft of hair resulting in a weaker strand of hair.

Asian dreadlocks should be the easiest to remove by far. The strands of hair with Asian ethnicities are typically large in diameter and very round which result in being the strongest among all ethnicities.

Mixed races that include African ethnicities are often easier to remove because most African American salons twist or interlock mixed hair types. Therefore, combing out dreads with this mixed race hair is often easier compared to other methods and ethncities. Other mixed races will vary significantly and so will the results of dreadlock removal. To get an idea of what to anticipate, we recommend comparing your mixed race hair type to the most similar type based on the content listed in the other ethnicity sections above.

We encourage people to remove their dreadlocks themselves due to the amount of time required. If you manage to remove most of your dreadlocks but need some help with the dreads in the back we can help with that. As stated earlier in this article, keeping the pH of your hair under 5.

In most cases the simplest way to do this is by avoiding shampoos and only using conditioners. Keeping hair under 5. To put things simply it will be messy. Keeping a few towels nearby will be very necessary. Conditioners will help balance pH and lubricate hair. Here are a few things you need to be clear about before deciding to go the loc removal route.

But ultimately, locs are matted strands of hair that have been matting together, more times than not, for years. If you were hoping to drape with loose hair in the same way you had length with locs, think again.

But, ultimately, to comb out the locs, the hair is not going to be as long as the locs. Dry strands, frayed and frizzy, require a lot more work after loc removal. My hair is back in this awesome fro. As previously stated, a big reason people opt to comb out their locs is because they want to keep some of the length it took years to accrue.

But there are ways to retain a good amount of it while still walking away with healthier strands. And then, just cut the loc at the point where the loc meets the loose hair.

But after growing her hair for five years and wanting to maintain some length, neither seemed satisfactory. So, Staci devised her own answer.

Read on to find out how she removed the dreadlocks and see an amazing before-and-after:. After five years of rocking my beautiful dreadlocks, the time finally came for a change.

I considered the obvious options. Shaved head? Pixie haircut? Not this time! Instead, I proceeded down the unknown path of combing them out. This is very important! This is neither an easy nor quick solution. Then again, neither is locking the hair to begin with.

As it began, so it must end. You also must understand that your hair will go through various stages of, well, challenges once the combing out is complete. Through trial and error, below is the method I devised for successfully combing out my dreadlocks. Note that this method worked for me, but it may not work for you. The results greatly depend on the condition of your hair and the skill in applying these techniques.

Neither myself nor Globe Salon can be responsible for your results. We recommend leaving the process up to a experienced professional. Got that?